LA LINGUA ME DIFENDI

2026

Speaking After the Body, Sala Umberto Veruda, Trieste
Curated by Lorenzo Lazzari, Adriatico Book Club

La lingua me difendi
2026
Four-channel sound installation, steel, aluminium, speakers, VHF radio scanner.
Dimensions variable

La lingua me difendi developed from my study of the sesolòte women: underpaid labourers who sorted and packed goods such as coffee, cotton, flour and tobacco at the port of Trieste in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, this was research I undertook in 2024 during a residency with POP Adriatico, Trieste, which led me to focus on the Porto Vecchio (the old port) of Trieste. The sounds I obtained during the residency were reformulated in 2026 into steel and aluminium sculptures for the exhibition Speaking with the Body, in Trieste, 2026.

The sound installation focused on women’s labour at the port, past and present, distributing sounds across sculptural forms and inviting listeners to physically tune into and out of the sounds. The work layers archival material with contemporary interpretations of songs and maritime radio transmissions.

Sound components included: VHF radio recordings of automated female voices recorded at the Porto Vecchio; a selection of songs sung by the sesolòte themselves taken from a 1970 album, likely recorded at the turn of the 20th century; two interpreted songs of the sesolòte, sung by Adriana Giacchetti and Chiara Minca; live communications received to the VHF radio scanner.

Courtesy Adriatico Book Club
Photo Davide Maria Palusa

MADELEINE RUGGI

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